Lily of the Valley
by Nommy and the Four Food Groups
Summary: After the death of their parents, Finland and Norway are forced to move in with their relatives in a different village. However, while the people there are friendly, the duo can't quite shake the feeling that they're being... watched. AU.
1. Flight

_AN:/ For future reference (though these characters may or may not be in this first chapter)…._

_Audun is Norway_

_Eirikur is Iceland_

_Mattias is Denmark_

_Thank you, and enjoy the exposition chapter!_

"Tino... Tino, come here!"

Upon hearing his brother's voice from the valley, Tino crawled out of the house that the two shared. It wasn't extravagant by any means, Tino knew, but it was their house and the house that their family had owned for generations. Made out of sturdy stone and sealed with earth, the house wasn't going anywhere for a long while. It was particularly favourable in the harsh environment that they inhabited, and Tino couldn't help but give it an appreciative nod before stumbling down the hill.

Though he'd lived there for all of his life, he still couldn't get used to the steepness of their hill. Previous generations had favoured defense over accessibility, thus the house was on some forsaken mound way above the rest of the village. Stifling curses, the boy arrived at the foot of the hill and embraced his brother briefly. As Tino looked at his sibling's face, he was surprised to see his expression slightly different from the norm - his eyebrows were slightly furrowed and the corners of his mouth twitched.

Tino smoothed the wolfskin on his brother's back. It was their father's before it had been his. He felt his brother tense at the touch and, in a moment, knew why he was looking so miserable.

"Audun, what's the matter?" He asked anyway, knowing that in a few moments he would have to lead their way back to the house and attempt to talk about their predicament and what they would make of it.

Audun first turned away, refusing to look Tino in the eye. With a withheld sigh, Tino put a hand on his shoulder and guided his brother back to the house. It would probably be easier to talk about once they sat down and huddled by the fire. It was freezing outside, and Tino now felt the bitter air on his uncovered ankles (clothing was too expensive to simply buy once one grew a centimeter or two - he'd had his clothing for a while now).

The brothers walked into their humble home, greeting the animals inside as they did so.

"...Hi, Troll," The older (but much more quiet) brother pet their goat's head.

"Hanatamago! How've you been?" The younger brother held out his arms and giggled as the puppy licked his face. She smelled like ash - probably from the fireplace.

Perhaps he should pick more flowers for the house - that would get rid of the smell. Besides, that could actually be _fun. _

_Or_ he could clean the fireplace more often, though _that_ option wasn't _nearly_ as inviting. Yuck.

Before going to light a fire in said fireplace, Tino gazed around the solemn room. The long structure and darkness of it was typical for the village, but its function was not. Normally, many more animals would be living in the house - at least in a richer home. That being said, the amount of people currently living in it was odd, to say the least. Two was unheard of in the village - normally, it was shared with parents and relatives.

Which brought Tino back to Audun's uncharacteristic sadness. He felt his way over to the fireplace and lit it, watching the smoke billow out of their house through a little hole in the roof. Coughing, Tino stepped back and stuck his foot out to shoo Hanatamago back. Now that he could see properly, he sat down on Audun's bed (well, a shelf covered with animal skin could be called a bed, right?) and patted a spot next to it, being wary of the sword that was draped across it. Because Audun was the oldest sibling, he received much of his parents belongings, as tradition directed. Audun's sword had once been his father's, then his mother's after the exchange of swords on their wedding day. Absentmindedly, Tino looked up and eyed his mother's sword, mounted on the wall with stone and lichens. It was reassuring to see them both there even when their parents themselves were not.

Audun sat down next to Tino and laid his head on his brother's shoulder, trembling slightly. Tino placed his hand on his brother's head, feeling much older than he actually was. Audun looked up at him, his eyes dilated, and said the inevitable.

"T-tino... a messenger called for me... from the village," he began, taking shuddery breaths in between phrases. "Apparently, mum and dad... Tino... they were killed in battle overseas. Our Viking army... most of it was overcome, Tino. They lasted the longest," Audun exhaled and sniveled pathetically, tears streaming down his face as though he were a child.

Tino, knowing that they couldn't do anything about it now and well aware that he shouldn't cry, held his brother close. "Audun, hush now. Knowing them, they're probably living it up in Valhall right now... they probably pity us because we're still stuck here," Tino consoled, propping him up and trying to straighten him out.

"B-but suppose they didn't get a proper burial!"

"Now, now. I'm sure that they were given the best burial possible in the battlefield. Probably with their swords in tow - maybe the survivors even put together some bread and cider to give them."

"Did you hear me just now?" Audun's tears had vanished, revealing the stoic expression that he normally donned. "They lasted the longest. The only other survivor was the messenger, and he couldn't possibly bury all of the dead."

Not even Tino's optimism could find a ray of sunshine in this news. "S'pose we get cursed, Audun! They're not going to be pleased..."

The two shivered against each other, taking in the fact that they could very well die soon. Good luck never came to Vikings that left their dead unburied, even if they weren't able to bury them. Fact was, the two were still family - they would both be blamed by the gods and by their dead parents. Tino sniffled pathetically at the very thought.

Audun, trying to change the subject, cleared his throat and stood up. "In any case, our father's cousin offered to take us in. He's our closest relative, both by blood and by actual proximity," Audun brushed a lock of hair out of his face and grabbed his sword with purpose. Tossing it an affectionate look, he shoved it into his belt's sword slot. "We're leaving today. Cousin's town is through the woods beyond our hill. We'll be able to make it by nightfall, if we hurry." Audun put on the most expensive thing he owned, a navy-coloured hat, and pulled his skin around his shoulders. With a stiff nod, he made his way to the exit of their little house, not seeming remorseful that he had to leave it at all.

Tino frowned and picked up Hanatamago, already having all that he needed with him.

Except...

His eyes fell to his mother's sword and, rationalizing that he needed a weapon of sorts, scrambled to his own bed (shelf... thing) and stood on it to haul it down. Lichen crumbled and broke away like dirt clods, showering Tino and the bed with dead plant. He grumbled and spat some out, wishing that Saturday would hurry up and arrive - he needed a bath.

Not having a belt of his own, Tino wielded the blade. It was much heavier than he expected, but he was sure that he could handle it. On his way out, he was forced to stop when he saw Troll gazing forlornly at Audun, sadness almost present in his face. It pained Tino to see anything looking that upset, so he ran and poked his brother (albeit harshly).

"Audun! What about Troll? Aren't we gonna bring him?"

Audun turned slightly, gave a shake of his head, and made his way outside.

Tino, on the other hand, gaped at where his brother had just been standing and ran out towards him. He panted from the extra weight of the sword. "Audun, Audun! Wait! Why would you leave Troll, huh?" Gasping pathetically, he couldn't help but follow his brother. Being left behind was infavourable, but Tino would rather it be the goat than him.

It was uncharacteristic of Tino to be so selfish, but it was him or an animal. Animals meant less than people did, didn't they? After all, animals didn't feel things like people did. Loneliness and abandonment were purely human feelings, right? That was the line of thought that Tino concentrated on as he walked into the forest with his brother. He didn't want to think of the cold, the curses that probably awaited the small family, the death of his parents.

For a forest, it was rather sparse. Wind hit the two almost directly while the sun simultaneously beat down on them - something thoroughly unfavourable in the brothers' eyes.

As they made their way through the woods (Hanatamago following them diligently), it gradually thickened and soon became impossible to see any sliver of the sky through the canopies. Tino was fascinated by it and asked his brother if they could camp there for the night - just to get a feel for the area - but Audun shot down his idea once it was spoken.

"We can't," he seemed to be walking faster than he was before. "Cousin said to get there as soon as possible. No dallying." Then he was quiet. No justification why, no sign that he even _knew _why, or anything of the sort. Though, honestly, Tino didn't mind - it was just his brother's nature. He _did_ mind that they couldn't stay, though. It was comfortable and pretty - such a shame not to take it all in for a night. Tino jutted his lower lip out and whined, earning a glare from Audun. Even when he'd been little, Tino hadn't been able to get away with begging, pouting, or crying in front of Audun. His brother had always expected him to take disappointment with grace, though Tino couldn't fathom why. As far as he was concerned, it was better to let people know that you were upset than to bottle your feelings inside of you and pretend that you were okay.

Still trudging through the forest (and happy that there was a clear path to show them the way), Tino looked up at the sun to get a general idea of the time, then remembered that he couldn't see the sun through the trees. He looked to Audun for help, but he seemed in no mood to talk.

How typical.

Now, Tino loved his brother, but sometimes he couldn't stand that he was so quiet and direct. Would it hurt to have small talk once in a while? An occasional, 'good day, how are you? ... how's the weather?' would be nice. He longed for something to speak about - their journey, animals, fighting, the water cycle, tendencies of old people, anything - but couldn't decide on one that Audun might spend more than a minute on.

Deciding to keep the silence, the two walked in eerie quiet for a few more hours.

That is, until they heard an animal howl.

Audun stopped, his head twitching back and forth. The sword was drawn and pointed in the direction of the noise, the wielder's eyes showing no more emotion than they usually portrayed. Tino froze as well, willing his breathing to be shallow.

Silence followed, settling over the two and the forest like a curtain. They remained in this state until Tino could no longer bear it.

"Audun, I think we're oka-"

"Shh!" His brother cut him off and waved a hand, as if that could take away Tino's voice.

The brothers stood still for a few more agonizing minutes. Audun then sheathed his sword and kept on walking, as if nothing had happened.

Tino knew better than to question his brother.

The rest of their journey went smoothly. The worst of their problems was the cold - Scandinavia was pretty harsh in that aspect. It didn't slow them down, however; they arrived at the giant gates of their relative's village by sundown.

The younger brother couldn't help but gape. He'd never seen a place so well-protected before - the walls were more than thrice Tino's height and probably very thick, though Tino couldn't measure that at the moment. The doors that lead out looked immobile, he wondered how they would get in.

As much as Tino was impressed by the sight, it also lead him to wonder. Why would a village need such protection? Sure, there were wild animals out and about, but surely a wall like this wasn't necessary.

Whatever the reason, it was pretty awesome to live in such a village. Tino's feet itched with excitement.

Audun looked confused, however. Not knowing what else to do, the elder brother knocked on the giant doors, hoping that sound transferred well through it.

Apparently, it didn't. No one came to the door for minutes. Audun frowned, and nudged Tino. "Can you call up to them?"

Tino nodded enthusiastically. Anything to get them in the village - it was growing colder than usual and Tino was freezing. Cupping his hands around his mouth, Tino called out a "HELLO!" to the top of the doors, happy that he'd saved his voice for the duration of the walk over.

After a minute, a figure appeared at the top of the wall. It was hard to make out, but the person looked rather tall… perhaps a man.

The silhouette called out to them. "HEY! WHO'S THERE?" The sound echoed through the forest; some animals scurried from tree to tree, frightened by the noise.

The voice was too distorted to determine the person's age by hearing it. Curious, Tino called up, "I DUNNO, WHO'RE YOU?" which earned him a painful bruise on the back of the leg - Audun didn't take any nonsense. Tino whimpered, then amended his response, courtesy of of his brother.

"SORRY! WE'RE TINO AND AUDUN. ER… FROM THE NEXT VILLAGE OVER!"

There was a pause. The figure wandered around a bit, then they received his response.

"OH, OKAY! WE'LL OPEN THE GATE RIGHT UP!"

Another lull, and then dirt rained down on the two brothers. Shielding their eyes, the two could make out the gigantic doors parting. They stepped back and waited for it to open, hoping that more dirt didn't decide to find its way onto their heads.

After the doors were open, the two trotted into the town.

The second that Tino got his entire form into the village interior, the gates snapped shut behind them, letting loose a loud _BANG_!

With a squeak, Tino made sure that he was intact, then managed to give the place a once over.

It may have been even more dilapidated than their old town. The houses were much more modern, but they had many broken windows that were boarded by planks of wood. Chimneys crumbled in on themselves, the roads were worn down below normal level, and all of the houses had large gates around them, as if they modeled themselves after the outside of the village they were located in. Even Audun was bothered by the appearance of the town - he put a hand on Tino's shoulder protectively.

Something was very wrong here.

Tino wanted to question the gate guard about the village, but a man walked up to them and all desire to ask questions was forgotten.

The man had disheveled hair and tired eyes framed by an odd contraption that neither of the brothers had seen before. A mole was placed above his lip, his expression cruel.

Before either of the brothers could say anything, the man spoke up.

"Audun," he nodded towards the elder brother, who nodded as well. "…and Tino. I've been waiting for you two to arrive." To punctuate his sentence, he pushed up on the thing on his face. Audun and Tino were pretty confused about the device, to say the least. Once again, Tino itched to ask questions, but held it in, this time for the sake of being polite.

Their confusion must have shown, because the man then decided to clear up his identity. "Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't introduce myself." He offered out his hand to both of them and shook them curtly. "I'm your cousin Roderich - you will be staying with me."

They nodded to him, not looking forward to their stay with him too much - he seemed like a stick in the mud. Expressing a rare emotion, Audun raised an eyebrow at the man and mimicked his stance, standing straight as a board and looking down his nose. Now grinning, Tino followed their cousin to his house, which (unfortunately) was as bad looking as the rest of the dwellings.

The inside was a pretty sorry sight. There were three beds (though one looked hastily thrown together) that were comfortable looking, but aside from that it was pretty dingy. A candle was flickering by the window as a woman worked on cooking something that smelled like it didn't want to be cooked. Tino's nose crinkled slightly and he milled around before realizing something vitally important.

"Oh, Odin! Where's Hanatamago, Audun?" He ran back towards the door and peered out it, earning a glare from Roderich, and then ran back, frantic.

"Whatever you're talking about, if it's not here now, it probably isn't in town, either. Don't bother yourself looking for it - no point in doing so now." Roderich sat down and glared down his nose (and that thing on his nose too) at his cousins, clearly annoyed by their existence.

Yup. He was a total stick in the mud. Tino mumbled an apology, but was cut off when a boy around his age wandered into the room. His white hair bobbed above his head, looking about as messy as Roderich's. The boy sat down at the table and placed his feet on it, staring intently at the two intruders.

Tino couldn't take it. "Er, hi! I'm Tino, and this is my brother, Audun," presently, he made a gesture towards Audun. "We're here because our parents've died and Roderich is our closest relative and cousin. Please excuse us being here! We'll try not to be any trou…ble…?" Tino blinked as the boy began to laugh. Burning with embarrassment, Tino was about to hide behind his brother, but the boy walked over and touched his shoulder.

"No, no need to apologize," the boy smiled good naturedly, and Tino noticed (and not without some spite) that he was taller than him. "I suppose that we're second cousins, aren't we? I'm Eirikur, but feel free to call me Eirik," the boy then ran his hands through his hair, quite possibly making it worse. He then lead them over to the table that he'd been sitting at before. Tino made a conscious effort to avoid putting his body on it - he didn't want dirt from shoes all over him. He was already in desperate need of a shower, thanks.

After they all were seated, Eirik spoke up again. "Now, what were you guys talking about? Did you lose something, Tino?"

Surprised that his name had been remembered, Tino forgot to speak and simply nodded.

"Hahaha, and what was that?"

"Er, my dog. Her name's Hanatamago -"

"Hanatamago? Haha, wow." Eirik laughed again, making Tino's face flush again. Could this guy hold in his laughter? Maybe?

"Y-yes. Hanatamago. She was walking here with me, but I dunno if she followed me or not - I haven't seen her in a long time…."

Eirik gave another one of his smiles. "And my dad told you not to look for her?"

Tino nodded.

"Smart of him to. We'll look for her tomorrow, okay, Tino? When it's nice and bright out." Eirik stood up, gave a wave, and crashed on his bed without another word.

Roderich coughed a few minutes later. The two brothers looked around to see Eirik's parents gaping at them, their mouths open.

The woman was the first to recover. "How did you do that?"

"Um, what?" Tino asked, a little unnerved. Too many people had stared at him today.

Roderich was the one that replied. "Get Eirik to hold a pleasant conversation with you. How did you…?"

The younger brother looked at the older one, who shrugged at him. Great. Apparently, Audun wasn't going to answer this for him. Darn. "Uh, he's not like that normally? I dunno." Tino copied his brother and shrugged as well.

The couple stood around in shock, still staring (Odin, could they _stop_ that?). Eventually, some sense kicked into the woman.

"Oh! I'm burning the food…." She scurried around and pulled a frying pan off of the fire pit, looking at the burned fish with scorn. "Who's going to eat this now?"

By this point in time, Audun and Tino were starving - the prospect of any food made their mouths water.

"We don't mind!"

"…We'll have some…."

The two brothers said this simultaneously.

"Er, if you're sure," the woman said, offering the fish to the two.

It was gone in seconds. The only evidence that there had once been a fish was the satisfaction on the two's face, both looking contented.

"You two sure were hungry!" The woman smiled and pat them on the head. "Oh! I didn't introduce myself, did I? I'm Elizaveta - it's a pleasure to have you two living with us!"

Tino had a feeling that she meant 'I'm really happy that someone will eat all of the atrocious stuff I cook!', but decided not to voice it. He was just pretty happy that she expressed some sort of interest with them. Smiling, Tino nodded pleasantly. "The feeling is mutual, Mrs. Elizaveta. Thanks for taking us in on such short notice!" Tino dipped his head towards her before getting laughed at again. Darn. Was he really so amusing to these people…?

Elizaveta was laughing, her pretty brown hair shaking as she did so. "No 'Mrs.' is necessary, 'Mr. Tino.'" She glanced up as if something had just occurred to her. "You are Tino, right? You two look so much alike…." Still chuckling, Elizaveta began to wash the dishes with a ratty cloth. Tino kinda wondered how that would clean anything, what with it being dirty itself and all.

Tino felt like he should confirm his identity - it would help considerably if his foster parent (?) if they were to have a workable relationship. "Yeah, yeah, I'm Tino. You can tell because I'm much shorter than Audun and I talk a lot more…." He twiddled his thumbs and sat on the bed that he assumed was put out for Audun and himself. "This bed's for us, right? I normally wouldn't ask and be so rude, but I'm really tired," as if to prove this, Tino punctuated his sentence with a yawn.

Another laugh directed at him. "Sure is, Sweetie. You get some rest, now. We'll show you around town and find your dog tomorrow," Elizaveta nodded at him and went back to smearing bacteria over her dishes.

Already nodding off, Tino snuggled himself against the bed, forgetting to take his shoes off in the process. For the last time that day, Tino was laughed at, but it was by an odd source. Momentarily, Audun was tugging Tino's shoes off of his feet, chuckling to himself as he did so. Roderich glanced over and couldn't help but smile - though the older brother wasn't so keen to express himself verbally, it was obvious that he really did care for his brother.

With that thought, Roderich took off the glasses from his eyes (he had been pretty certain that the brothers were confused about them, but they would understand them soon enough) and curled on the bed he shared with Elizaveta, shutting his eyes but not falling asleep just yet.

A creak to the right of him alerted Roderich that Audun had gone to bed, then a gentle _woosh _and a sudden slight sagging of the bed told him that Elizaveta had blown the candle out and was sleeping, as well.

Roderich roused himself from the bed, walked outside, boarded the house's doors and windows with wood, and made his way over to the gate of the town, the stars dancing above him as he left his home for the night.

_AN:/_

_As with any story, this one's started slowly. I have a lot of plans for it - this is probably not heading in the direction that you expect it to._

_Please bear with me and follow through to the next few chapters. If there are any mistakes that I've made in any way, please point them out to me._

_By the way, I've done "Viking research," so some of their customs show through in this fanfiction. It's not all going to be accurate to Vikings, but if something is blatantly incorrect in anything that I've associated with being a Viking tradition or lifestyle feature, please let me know.  
_

_Thank you very much!_

_-Sweet_


	2. Flowers

_AN:/ Thanks for reading through to this chapter._

_Longer and more meaningful author's note is at the end._

_Enjoy~_

_

* * *

_

The little town was guarded as it was every night, much to a certain group's disdain.

"Didn't they just get new people to move here? It would be the perfect time to invade!" The first speaker had a nasally, whiny, raspy voice - one that not even a mother could love.

A scoff. "We can't win 'em all. You know _that_, at least," spoke another. This one had a rough voice, almost like a stereotypical bully's. The owner of the voice shuffled around, thankful for the especially dark night. The guards may become wary, but it's not like it mattered much if they weren't able to see the intruders. The speaker tossed its head toward the other. "In any case, we can't go tonight. Let's lure them into a false sense of security, then we'll strike."

"Aw, c'mon, that's so cliché!" The first complained, thus getting hushed by the second.

"Shh! It's cliché, but it works. Now come on, we don't want to get caught now, do we?"

Without another word, the pair slipped off into the shadows of the forest, leaving no trace of their existence in their wake.

* * *

Sunlight streamed through the broken windows of the house, dappling itself over the people within it. The brothers were naturally early risers, which proved to be an annoyance to the other inhabitants. Sleeping becomes difficult when two boys are noisily exploring their new surroundings and making no attempt to quiet themselves.

Soon enough, the entire house was (grudgingly) awake, grumbling at the two as they set up the kitchen. Tino and Audun, however, were too excited to eat. They both wanted to wander the town, no matter how crumbly it was. Tino was also pretty anxious about Hanatamago - he hoped she was all right and comfortable.

Thankfully, Elizaveta noticed their discomfort and stopped cooking for a moment, turning to her son. "Eirik, aren't you going to show them around town? I'm sure that they could use some friends here," she pulled a stray lock of hair and twirled it, apparently not aware that touching hair while preparing food wasn't exactly healthy.

The white-haired boy nodded and cast a movie star smile at the new arrivals, taking care to lengthen his strides as he opened the door. Tino supposed that Eirik was intending to open it like a gentleman or something equally ridiculous, but there was some resistance on the door's part. This resulted in a rather peeved Eirik yanking on it until it splintered and cracked open, taking the door off of its hinges.

The boy dashed out, dragging the brothers along while his parents barked at him from their house entrance.

After they were a safe distance away, Eirik brushed off his hands and looked at the brothers, studying them mentally. Tino shivered and coughed in a polite way, trying to get Eirik to remember what he was doing there.

It worked. The boy stood up a little straighter at the sound, looking them in the eye. "Ahem! Anyway, we're out of that one, aren't we?" He smiled and ruffled his own hair, effectively making it look even more awful than usual. Tino was able to hold back his grimace; Audun was not.

The elder brother raised a hand, as if to get permission to speak, but began to talk before Eirik acknowledged him. "Uh, no, you're not 'out of that one.' You're going to have to go back to your house and explain it to them eventually," he then crossed his arms, giving a typical 'Audun Glare' to the younger boy. "How old are you, anyway? You shouldn't act so irresponsibly."

Within an instant, Eirik's happy demeanour melted and transformed into one that was even colder than Audun's.

Tino shivered. Maybe this was what Cousin Roderich and Elizaveta had meant - Eirik certainly didn't look eager to speak at the moment.

"Perhaps that's what you think. See if I care," Eirik turned his back to them. "I'm going to market. Later."

Tino and Audun watched as the boy walked to the gate, had it opened, and left, the gates snapping shut the moment his body was outside.

A lapse of silence followed, but Tino broke it.

"So… I guess we'll have to explore town on our own, huh?"

Audun responded with a stiff nod.

"So… uh… come on, then?" Tino shuffled his feet, hoping to at least get a monosyllabic answer.

Another nod.

So much for that.

Pouting because his brother was such poor convorsation, Tino walked on ahead, eager to meet someone new.

Finding Hanatamago would be a nice plus to that too. Hopefully, she was just eating someone's food around town and wasn't hurt. As he walked, he glanced up and saw a young man, probably around twenty, leaning against the walls of the city. Figuring that he may as well get to know someone that was his age, Tino trotted up to him, feeling like he had when he'd went outside for the first time in his own village.

The man took notice of him first and he smiled, adjusting a device on his nose that looked just liked what Cousin Roderich wore. Tino opened his mouth to speak, but the man introduced himself first.

"Tino and Audun from the next village over, right? How are you settling in?"

Tino blanched. How did he know that? Surely news didn't travel _that_ quickly. Maybe this guy was a creepy stalker that was going to kill him as soon as Audun turned away. Apparently, he looked pretty funny at the moment, because the man laughed at him.

"You should see your face!" he chuckled, not noting Tino's embarassment towards getting laughed at (again). He glanced up and cleared his throat, composing himself. "Ah, sorry. I was the person operating the gate last night. Which one are you? The one who called up to me?"

Relieved that he didn't have a stalker, Tino smiled sheepishly, nodding at him as he did so. "Uh-huh, I'm Tino, it's really nice to meet you…."

"…Eduard. I'm Eduard - it's a pleasure to see new faces here, that's for sure. Why're you guys here, anyway?" Eduard pulled off the thing on his nose and rubbed it with his shirt, replacing them when he stopped. "No idea why anyone would want to come here."

Tino almost agreed with him, but stopped himself. It would be way too mean and rude to be so crass - no matter where you lived, you wouldn't want visitors calling it ugly or inhospitable (even if it was). Shaking his head, Tino replied earnestly, "No, it's a nice village! I've never seen one this big…." His head went blank - it was pretty hard to think of compliments for this place. "Or one as well-protected! I doubt anything gets in here, right?"

Eduard's face fell and, from the looks of how the lines on his face aligned, Eduard seemed to be upset quite often. The man shook his head, his hair slapping the side of his face.

"No, things get in all of the time, but I probably shouldn't say anything more…."

Tino blinked and looked at him, hoping that Eduard would catch his 'tell me tell me tell me' vibes.

He didn't.

He did seem ready to get off the subject, however. With a start, Eduard took Tino's shoulder and beckoned towards Audun. "I'll show you two around town, okay? I s'pose you need to know your way around…." Eduard smiled at them and headed towards one of the many broken down houses, motioning towards it with one hand. "That's where I live. My two brothers also live there… may as well introduce you to them." With that, he shuffled to the front of the house and pulled on the door. Tino noted that there was the same resistance in opening it as he'd seen with Eirik this morning.

The people in this town really ought to repair their doors. Tino would offer to help, but he was only really good at flower arranging.

Audun and Tino stepped in after Eduard, peering around his house as soon as they could see it fully.

It was actually pretty nice. Despite some objects being chipped and the house itself looking a little bare, everything was well taken care of and clean. The aroma of freshly baked bread hung in the air around them - rather uncommon, that smell. Normally, bread was baked and then kept, being eaten stale on most occasions. Tino remembered that he had skipped out on breakfast; he felt a prick of hunger dance at the bottom of his stomach.

There was a man holding the bread, his brown hair was pulled back and out of his face. With a smile and a nod towards Eduard, he placed the food on the table in front of a young boy who stared at said food hungrily. Tino could sympathyize.

Eduard cleared his throat (he seemed to like doing that) and made a sweeping motion towards the guests, presenting them effectively. "Toris, these are the two boys that moved in with Roderich last night. They'll be staying here for a while, presumably, so be sure to welcome them appropriately."

Eduard had directed it towards the brunette, but cast a few glances at the boy at the table. Tino didn't know why, but he didn't have too much time to think about it. The brunette with the bread walked over to him and shook his hand.

"It's a pleasure to have you here. I'm Toris."

Tino blinked. Everyone in this place was so polite! "I'm Tino, nice to meetcha," he smiled and let go of Toris's hand, stepping aside so Audun could be approached better.

Audun shook hands with Toris as well, mumbling "Audun" as he did so. Toris nodded to them and beckoned towards the boy at the table, who promptly hid under it and refused to come out.

Toris didn't attempt to cajole him into coming out, he just cast the brothers a rueful smile. "He's painfully shy, I apologize…. Eduard!" he turned towards his brother. "I'm sure that they have better things to be doing than hanging around here. There's so many other people to meet. How about you show them the other people?"

Eduard nodded. "Sure thing."

Eduard led the brothers outside and shut the door, pushing on it to close it completely. "I guess I should show you the main guard first, then. Come along, you two."

Like ducklings, Audun and Tino followed their guide to the center of the town. The entire atmosphere was more lively than it had been at night, obviously. More people meandered around and spoke to each other, filling the town with low murmurings mushing together.

Standing above the crowd was a blond man with piercing eyes. Upon seeing Eduard, he nodded politely, then shot him a questioning look when he saw the newcomers. Trotting forward, Eduard presented them as he had with his own brother, explaining their situation and who they were staying with.

The man nodded and gruffly told them his name, Ludwig. "I look forward to living with you two - you seem respectable," he then turned around. Apparently, the conversation was over.

Eduard gave the pair a sheepish smile, leading them away. He would pull people aside in the street, introducing the pair to them briefly before moving on. By the end of the afternoon, Tino had met:

A peppy boy named Feliciano

A sweet girl named Lili and her hotheaded brother, Vash

A quiet man named Kiku

A boy that looked similar to Feliciano, but denied all relations to him (and didn't give his name). Eduard later shared that his name was Lovino, but advised that the two stay far from him

A man that followed Lovino around ("another person that you may want to stay away from") named Antonio

And an annoying man named Gilbert, who claimed brotherhood with Ludwig

* * *

By this time, Audun was sick of walking around and outright refused to go on.

"If you don't mind, Tino, I'm going to head back home," he scratched behind his head, making his obnoxious cowlick twitch. Tino had the sudden urge to run over Audun's hair with a comb.

With that, Audun made his way towards Cousin Roderich's house, knowing the way to it awfully well. Curiously enough, the door had been fixed. That was fast.

Tino raised an eyebrow, but then returned his attention to Eduard. "That's just Audun - don't take offence at him."

"I wasn't about to. I'm rather tired, myself, actually," Eduard rubbed his head. Tino supposed that Eduard must have a headache as well.

Tino gave him a nod. "Uh-huh, how about we sit down?"

The pair made their way towards the side of the street and rested on the side of it, basking in the noon light. It was chilly but sunny, the air penetrated Tino's clothing and he shivered.

Eduard took notice of Tino's discomfort. "Haven't you got any better clothing?"

"N-no, I don't."

Eduard made a _tsk_ noise and smiled. "Well, I think I can arrange to take you to market tomorrow. How would you like that? We could pick you up some new pants - maybe some new coats, too."

Tino's face brightened. He hadn't had decent clothing in a while - this would be practically perfect.

If only he knew exactly what a market was.

Well… it never hurt to ask, right?

"I think I'd like that very much, but what's a market?" Tino had tried to word it inconspicuously, but the moment it came out of his mouth, he realized that it still sounded pretty stupid.

Eduard didn't laugh at him, though. "A place where you buy stuff that you need, basically." He didn't seem particularly good at explaining it, but it sounded simple. Comprehensible.

Just the way Tino liked it. It wasn't that he was stupid, he just had a lot on his mind right now.

He hadn't gotten over the whole 'I'm so cursed and probably am also gonna die soon' thing. It was a little hard to forget about, but Tino was pretty good at hiding his discomfort.

He picked at some grass and peeped up at Eduard. "Sounds good, Eduard," he crushed some of it in his hand and let it go in the wind. "Thanks for showing me around, by the way. Eirik was supposed to -"

"Eirik?" Eduard laughed. "As if that guy would leave his house for anything."

Tino bit his lip. "Yeah, that was the general consensus that I got, too. He was actually being really nice to us, though. Audun yelled at him and he ran off to market or something, at least that's what he said."

A nod from Eduard. "If that kid's nice, it's not gonna be for long. He's normally so standoffish," a pause. "I hope he's back soon. It's not safe to be out around dark over here."

There was that mention of things not being really safe here again. Tino tried to send off his 'tell me' vibes again.

It seemed to be working, but Elizaveta called from the house.

"Tino! Oh, there you are," she fiddled with the apron around her waist. "I just made lunch, how'd you like to have something to eat?" She was about to walk back inside, but her eyes caught hold of Eduard. "You can eat with us, too, Eduard. We have an empty chair at the moment." Elizaveta gave them a look, but Tino couldn't figure out what it meant from this distance.

The boys walked into the house (Tino marveled at how the door opened smoothly) and sat down comfortably. Eduard gave a wave towards Audun, who responded with a blank stare.

Elizaveta returned, placing buttermilk in drinking horns and handing one to each of the boys. Eduard gulped his down right away, but Tino and Audun were curious - they had never seen a drinking horn before. All that they'd had at home were wooden cups - old ones at that. These were much nicer - crafted from the horns of some beast.

After they sipped the buttermilk, Elizaveta returned with a cooked bird of sorts, placing it on the table. "Help yourself!"

Whatever bird it was, Tino hadn't tasted it before. He gave a look towards Audun, who shrugged, then looked at Eduard.

"Where have you guys been living? This is 'gull, and pretty well made 'gull at that," Eduard nodded towards Elizaveta, who blushed in return.

"'S sweet of you to say," she twirled her hair as she had before. Was it some sort of habit of hers? It was pretty gross. Tino shivered.

Eduard smiled politely. "It's only true…."

Tino really didn't want to stick around to see what he thought was shameless flirting between a young man and a married woman. He stood up with purpose. "I'm gonna walk around outside, if that's alright with you guys."

Audun stood to join him. No objections were made by the other two present (Tino had no idea where Cousin Roderich was at the moment), so the brothers went outside.

Once they were out from the house, Audun began to make his way for the gates of the village.

Alarmed, Tino rushed after him. "Audun! Where're you going?"

He was greeted by Audun's blank stare. "I'm just seeing the surrounding land. We'll be fine - I have the sword."

Now relieved, Tino trotted by his heels. When they arrived at the gate, Tino asked Ludwig (nicely) if he would let them out for a look around.

He nodded. "Just be sure to be back as soon as you can. It becomes hard to see in there when it's dark - you could run into something unfortunate."

It sounded like a threat to Tino, but he kept his mouth shut.

The doors swung open and the boys walked out. Tino thanked Ludwig before stepping completely out.

Then, the gates slammed shut as they normally did.

Tino followed Audun around, who was way more interested in the outdoors than Tino. He studied almost everything that could be studied, inspecting every blade of grass in the forest.

Tino didn't understand his motives until Audun rubbed his fingers together, apparently saw something, and walked purposefully towards a clearing.

At first, Tino saw nothing. Just a giant hill that stood in the way of mostly everything.

Seeing it made him homesick.

Audun dragged Tino up to the top of the mount, not letting him slow down for anything. Something seemed to have him excited, but Tino knew that he wouldn't know until they reached the top.

Once they reached the summit, the view took Tino's breath away.

Stretched out beneath them were flowers - thousands and thousands of flowers. Each swayed gently, creating an ocean below them.

Tino hugged his brother tight. "Oh, Audun! This is perfect! I don't know how you do it, but you can always find me flowers," Tino laughed and began to run down the hill, almost falling as he did so. "We can make the entire village pretty with these, just think!"

He touched the tips of the flowers, looking for one in particular that he couldn't seem to find. "Hm…." Normally, Tino could find them everywhere. Though they were poisonous, Tino loved using them to spruce up dull rooms and bouquets. "Audun, no Lily of the Valley is growing here…."

Tino received one word in response. "Pity."

_Hmph_ing, Tino decided to make the best out of it anyway. "I'll pick some flowers to bring back, okay? I can't thank you enough, Audun - you're the best!" He grinned, gratitude written all over his face.

He was just about to pick a pretty Marguerite Daisy when a shadow descended over him. Tino's hair raised as he peered back, gasping in surprise at the person that glared down at him.

"_What_ do you think you are doing in my garden?"

* * *

_AN:/ Before I say anything else, I want to thank my reviewers. I really appreciate your input - thanks for taking the time to give me your opinion on the story._

_In particular, I want to thank Ripan for pointing out several flaws in my fanfiction, and for giving me the incentive to point something out._

_All of the characters, unless stated otherwise, are Vikings from the Scandinavia area that's the setting for this story. That basically means that Tino is not from Finland and that Norway is (not necessarily) from Norway._

_I'm not too sure which country this fic is actually situated in. Oops._

_Also, I don't intend for this to be seen as historical. As with Roderich's glasses, many more modern inventions will probably make their way in, for simplicity's sake. _

_Er, I suppose you could think of it as history-inspired, but I'm really gonna twist that a lot.  
_

_Much thanks to my beta (of sorts) as well. I tend to be stupid when I write - she helps a ton._

_Lastly, I want to thank you for sticking with me and for reading this awfully tedious author's note. XD;;_

_- Sweet_


	3. Fabric

_AN/: Once again, thank you so much for reading this far and sorry for the wait! I hope you enjoy regardless._

* * *

Tino's mouth quivered as he turned to face the voice that had confronted him. Oh man, had they screwed up this early? Sneaking into someone's garden and taking their flowers that they probably sold – for shame! Carefully, he snuck a look at the man.

That wasn't what he had been expecting. The man had a joking expression on his face, his smile easygoing. He'd just been teasing, that was it. Tino breathed a sigh of relief and waved at the man, whose blue eyes glimmered in response. Coupled with the breeze that the place was getting and the field of flowers, the scene looked almost picturesque.

The man pushed back a mass of slightly-curled blond hair and waved his hand at the brothers, laughing lightly as he did so, "Ah, are you two lost? Or new? Regular villagers wouldn't even dream about leaving the confines of their walled town," he chuckled again, sizing both of them up. It was a little unnerving, so Tino found it a good plan to get rid of this guy (who talked really funny) as soon as he could.

"Y-yes, we're new! I'm Tino and this is my older brother, Audun. We're sorry for trespassing, did we... uhm, do anything wrong?" he asked, trying not to ask too many questions. This man was annoying to talk to as is - didn't want to hear his stupid voice any more than he had to.

An odd look settled across the man's face, which was pretty weird because it previously been very pleasant. Tino flinched back – it looked pretty malicious to him, but who was he to give his opinion on some guy he'd just met? "Oui? That's very nice," he said.

Yet his expression didn't seem to back _that _up _at all._

"And non, non, nothing wrong, just that this _is_ my garden and you shouldn't be snooping around here." He made it a point to look at his nails, which were pretty well taken care of. Tino had never seen nails so long and nice, but he wasn't jealous - such things tended to be troublesome when it came to work.

Upset that he couldn't keep any of the flowers around him, Tino avoided pouting but decided to ask this man a few more questions. He seemed kind of shifty, not like the people from the village. Tino righted his hat, making sure that it was tilted just so, and stood up to his full height.

…Which was admittedly not very tall. Poor guy.

"All right then, we'll be leaving now. But we'll probably see you around, right? Do you live in the village?" Tino asked, already knowing the answer to the question. His face was a carefully practiced curious look, his eyebrows up, his mouth slightly bent downwards in confusion. If you were prying, you couldn't exactly look like you were suspicious or anything. Appearances made all the difference in the answers that you received.

The man's eyes narrowed as if he suspected that Tino wasn't fond of him, but the look disappeared quickly. Apparently, he knew that appearances were important as well.

"Ah, non, I do not. I live in the market town - over there - see?" He pointed a finger over yonder, making Tino follow it. If he focused, he was able to see little cabins, only slightly visible from the weak light of the candles that burned inside of them. Looking closer, he thought that he could see a sail as well – the market was a port town, or so it seemed.

Tino, slowly realizing that the guy was just some one from another town (and not a creeper or murderer or anything), relaxed. "Oh, okay. Me and Audun were planning to go there anyway, uhm, tomorrow, actually," a smile punctuated Tino's sentence. "We'll see you then, okay?" Tino waved at the man (who awkwardly waved back), and took Audun's arm.

The sun was setting as they made their way up the hill, making Tino a little nervous. They weren't supposed to be out this late! What if they got stuck in a ditch and died? Or got eaten by wild animals? Or tripped on a root and sprained an ankle? Or _stubbed their toes?_ Possibilities whirled inside Tino's head, but his paranoia party ended with a nudge from Audun.

"We're at the top, Tino. Look at the sky…."

Tino blinked dumbly, but, after a few long moments, complied to his brother's whims. He offered a glance up at the sky, but then gasped and started to stare.

It was so _beautiful_. Not even on their hill had they gotten a view of the night sky like _this_. Stars danced above them - framing the moon in a spellbinding manner. Tino's jaw dropped and he gaped openly, noting briefly that his brother (imagine!_ His _brother - gasping at _stars_) was doing the same.

Desperate to share, Tino called from on top of the hill, "Hey! Flower guy!"

The sound echoed throughout the valley, making some birds flee from their nests. The rest of the world stirred, but the man from before was nowhere in sight. Puzzled, Tino chewed a lip and stood on his tiptoes.

How did someone disappear from a valley like that? The entire flower "garden" was bowl-like in structure – hills surrounded it on all sides. In order to leave, you'd need to climb a hill, which would take quite some time... And he hadn't even _moved_, from what Tino could recall...

Where _was_ he?

After a few moments of staring blankly into space and hoping that the man would appear out of thin air, Audun sighed and pulled at Tino's tattered shirt.

"Why would you even _want_ to show him? He was a creep."

Before Tino could comment on how chatty Audun was acting, the boy was already heading down the hill - back towards their new home. Tino sighed in resignation and followed, trying not to tumble as he did so. If he could _just_ avoid getting hurt on the hill, then they _might_ be able to get home safely.

As Tino thought this, a wave of panic washed over him. Oh man! They could see the stars right now, who knew how late it was? A monster could jump out at any second and eat them alive, or worse! It would slowly torture them, growing stronger as the life slowly ebbed from their being! Laughing all the while and remarking on what a piece of work man was! Or _worse - it could start reciting its own poetry and tie them to a tree so they'd have to listen!_ The horror!

Audun was the first to make it back on the path, and looked on in contempt as Tino struggled over the roots and rocks, on the lookout for any kidnapping monsters (and for miscellaneous items that could be used to plug his ears).

When the two were comfortably back on the path and en route to the village, they walked in a sort of compatible silence - Tino occasionally shuffling his feet behind him as he did so. Every so often, they would hear a howl or twitter from a strange beast - but neither wanted to think about it too much.

Eventually, Tino spied the gate looming in the distance - daring the forest to come and take it by storm. Apparently, the forest took it up on that dare a lot, not that Tino had ever seen it himself, but whatever. Part of him wanted to, but at the same time, he valued his skin. From what he could piece together, when the forest struck, it struck _hard._

The pair was almost at the gate – so close! Tino couldn't wait to curl up and sleep (he vaguely pondered about his sleeping arrangements, and then let it pass). Almost there, _almost there..._

Just when they were about to flee to the gate, a terrifying howl resonated across the forest, sending chills up both of their spines. Audun, thinking quickly, grasped for his sword, fumbled for a moment, but soon had it pointing at the forest - daring it to come closer.

Tino, on the other hand, had no weapon - so he picked up a twig from the ground and held it in front of him menacingly, hoping that it would scare whatever was lurking in the trees. Both brothers kept their eyes peeled, searching the woods for any sign of movement. If they made a run for it, the creature(s) may catch sight of them and chase them and kill them but first feed them to its babies while they were still alive - something that didn't sound very appealing.

They stood in a frozen silence for a few slow moments, but didn't have to wait long. From behind one of the bushes, Tino saw movement - nothing much, but enough to arose suspicion (oh, and there was a humongous tail jutting out from the side, but he wasn't looking at it very closely). Tino nudged his brother, who turned his attention to it and pushed Tino to the other side, muttering "make sure there's nothing over there" as he did so.

The younger brother complied and pointed his twig at the other side of the path, emitting light growl sounds as he did so. Maybe that would scare them off.

Maybe.

...Probably not.

The two stood, quivering slightly, as the animal snuffed around in the bushes, jumping noticeably when a head suddenly reared itself from out of the foliage. It crept forward ever so slightly, pushing its snout through the leaves.

Its face was probably the _ugliest_ thing either of them had ever seen.

Definitely canine, the creature showed its teeth at the two of them, in a mock smile, if you will. The fangs themselves were strikingly grotesque, something that could be clearly seen despite the dearth of light.

Tino clung on to his brother, wielding his stick menacingly. He wouldn't admit that he was scared, no way….

Audun was staring that animal down pretty good, though – the boy swung his sword and let it catch the light, showing the creature what it was messing with.

This seemed to strike the wolf-thing as incredibly funny. It bared its teeth some more, revealing the plaque that was caked on them, and let out a hyena-esque noise, ringing peals of quasilaughter throughout the forest. Audun held steady, the glare still on his face, the sword still gripped tightly in his hand...

It made a movement forward, a paw gingerly placed out of the bush. Audun, alarmed, struck out quickly - missing spectacularly. The creature found this hysterical and cackled once again, rolling over a bit in its place.

As it was distracted, Audun swiped at it, hitting its back leg with a satisfying _thump_.

With a howl of pain, the animal sprinted back into the forest as fast as its injured leg would take it.

The brothers waited for a few minutes, and then Audun sheathed his sword and continued on his way without another word.

Tino, confused by the episode in its entirety, bounded over to his brother while saying, "So, why do you think it ran like that? Is that seriously what everyone's afraid of? A little cowardly wolf... type... thing?"

Audun scoffed at his brother and pulled at his cowlick. "Well, there has to be more, hasn't there? Besides that, these people don't seem to have weapons or materials to make them with. All they have is a wall, and once that's broken through, what defenses do they have?" The boy stopped when they got to the gate and looked at Tino pointedly, obviously signaling for him to call up.

Sighing, Tino cupped his hands around his mouth, "HELLOOOO! WE'RE BACK! PLEASE LET US IN!"

There was a stall as there always seemed to be, and then the gates shuddered open, almost whacking Tino's hat off as it did so. The two scuttled in and braced themselves for the bang of the door, greeted Ludwig, and ran off to Cousin Roderich's house.

Everyone was asleep, and Eirik was back. Eduard hadn't stayed, apparently, and the seagull was gone.

Tino took off his own hat and Audun's, set them on the side, and curled into bed - asleep in an instant.

* * *

"Hey, you two are going to market today, right? Get up then, sleepy heads!"

Tino and Audun groaned, blinking their eyes open. Oh, look, Eirik was right in their faces. _That_ was a nice wake up call. Absolute pleasure.

Audun was able to sit up straight away, but not Tino. The younger of the two whimpered and pulled himself up, only to reveal a faceful of hives and blotchiness to his brother and step-brother person.

Audun sighed. "I should've known better. You always get like this when you're around flowers, now don't you?" The older brother sighed and pushed him back down. "You can't go out today, you know."

Eirik, on the other hand, didn't seem to be worried about Tino in the least. "It looks like he's got some allergy problems." A shrug followed this statement, and he called over to the side. "Ma! Tino's got allergies, can you help him out?"

There was some shuffling from outside, then Elizaveta opened the door (which actually moved rather nicely). Her apron was covered in dirt – presumably, she'd been working in her garden. The woman glanced over at Tino, whose red face stood out like a sore thumb. She smiled and walked over to him, though before she said anything, she turned to Audun. "Oh, you two wanted to go to market today, right? You go alone, I'll give you money. Eirik'll lead you there - won't you Eirik?"

She didn't pause much, but Eirik was able to give a slight nod.

"Good! Don't be back too late, don't want you missing dinner."

Eirik was ready to bounce out of there, but Audun had other plans. He turned to his brother (who was getting fussed over by Elizaveta at the moment). With a hesitant (and rare) smile, Audun touched his shoulder, "Do you want anything? Erm, other than clothing, I mean."

Tino smiled at Audun as well. Stifling a sneeze, Tino tried to get his request out quickly. "Just ah, ah... a lily of the valley, tha-that's all I want," he said as fast as he could, ignoring the '_tsk tsk,_' he received from Elizaveta. Sure, asking for more flowers would probably be the death of him, but hey, those were his absolute _favourites_. He didn't get to see them too often, either, for whatever reason – at least not any more.

Audun's expression told Tino that he'd been expecting that. Without another word, the elder brother hurried out of the house, Eirik struggling to keep up with him.

The two boys walked towards the gate of the village in a forced, uncomfortable silence, both making a point not to regard the other in any way at all. To say that they thoroughly disliked each other would be a _gross_ understatement. Audun, lacking the skills to apologize (unlike his brother), resolved to ignore him. He had nothing to feel bad about - Eirik had been a brat, that was all. Scolding him had been necessary.

They were already walking on the dirt path out of the village, the long walk looming in front of them like an oncoming typhoon. Eirik was trying to sneakily kick sand onto Audun's shoe; Audun was trying to ignore him. It wasn't worth it, fighting with him. Family feuds were deplorable, and acting like a child to your cousin's son wasn't called for.

At least, that's what the level-headed Audun was able to rationalize.

They kept walking – the only acknowledgment of the other occurred when Eirik pointed down a road that turned right and went down it himself.

After _another_ hour of _walking_, the two found themselves facing a placid ocean and the cute town set up beside it. Waves lapped casually at the shore, sailboats floated past them idly, and people bustled to and fro, little market stalls set up along the main path of the town. Houses sat further back, but they seemed to be closed off – stalls sat directly on the road right before it led to the houses, creating a sort of rough barricade.

Beyond the houses and the barricades, a castle of sorts stood - an imposing figure glaring down at the marketplace below.

People manned stalls, all looking cheerful and hungry for customers. Pokey buyers touched every bit of fabric at the rug seller's stall, gourmets (was that Feliciano?) weighed each fruit, and alcoholics examined the dates on wine. All the while, sheep bleated, cows mooed, and wolves howled.

Wait, _wolves?_

Audun looked up in alarm, and noted several wolves kept in pens behind several stalls and houses. Some snapped at him as he walked by, others sniffed at his fingers. Playing with his cowlick nervously, Audun nudged Eirik.

"What are these things doing here? They could kill people!"

"They're just _pets_, calm down. Jeez."

Audun blinked. Of course! This is why the town was terrorized – the wolves got out of their pens at night and attacked. The village people were so _stupid_. They knew about the market and the wolves and the attacks, yet were ready to just write them off as harmless pets? Was he the only one thinking _rationally?_

Before he could argue, he caught sight of some very well-made clothing set up at a stall, completely damage-free and soft looking. The older brother trotted up to the stall and gave a stiff nod to the shopkeeper, who mock-saluted him.

"Hey there! Interested in some quality clothes?" He called to Audun, his long sleeves covering his hands. He looked pretty comical for someone trying to sell clothing - was all of his clothing supposed to be oversized? He looked pretty foreign... hardly anyone _he'd _ever seen had such dark hair - and his facial structure was simply _odd_ as well. Deciding not to give it too much thought, Audun nodded at the man.

"Yes, do you have any suggestions?" He asked, peering at the different outfits appraisingly.

The man shook his head. "Actually, I don't. Just look around, find something you like and buy buy _buy!_" He clapped his covered hands together, his cowlick bouncing. It seemed to be grinning, but cowlicks can't smile, right?

Audun shuddered, but resolved to search through his wares, finding clothing that looked too old-fashioned even for _his _tastes. And others, well, call him a critic, but they looked _far _too flashy. What was with those '_exotic_' types and their gaudy clothes?

This guy certainly had a wide range of clothing, though. The prices reflected that as well – everything was ridiculously expensive. That is, excluding the clothes that looked normal and actually _wearable_. _Those _were reasonably priced and well within Audun's budget.

He picked out some simple outfits that he assumed would fit Tino, and picked out even simpler ones for himself. Then, he paid the man, ignoring his complaints about picking the "cheap-o" clothes.

Audun was just about ready to go, but then he remembered that Tino wanted some flower that he'd probably have a reaction to. Sighing, he scanned the stalls and found the blond man from the day before, selling a variety of wine and flowers.

The man noticed Audun and gave a smile, beckoning him over. "Ah, Audun, pleasure to see you again! Would you like to buy some wine? It's _foreign~_" He waved a bottle in Audun's face, who was sorely unimpressed. He pushed aside the bottle and shook his head, instead motioning towards the flowers.

"I want a lily of the valley."

The seller blanched and set the bottle down, muttering something about Vikings and their ale. He then crossed his legs and gave Audun an intent look. "Ah, we do not sell them. So sad, isn't it, _mon cher_?"

Audun set his brow and glared at the man. "But you're running a _flower shop_. You _have_ to sell them."

Chuckling now, the man played with the wine bottles on the table. "But we don't. Anyway, if you think you're sneaky, I'm pretty sure the king has some in his garden, but you didn't hear it from me." With that, he reclined on his chair. He was looking pretty comfortable, but then a ruckus sounded from a few stalls down the way.

"Alfred, those are _mine!_ Give them back!"

"Haha, make me, ya' loser!"

"Pa-_PAAAA!_"

The flower seller twitched, then sighed and pushed himself up. "Please, excuse me. I'll be back in a minute if you want to buy any other flowers," he gave a business-like smile, then huffed over in the direction of the two voices.

Pah, like _hell_ he wanted any other flower. Deciding to pretend that he was sneaky, Audun slipped off into the crowd and made his way towards the end of the path, diverting off of it to avoid the barricade.

He crept through the creepily silent town, jumping whenever a fenced-in wolf barked at him, but within a few minutes grew used to the place. It was charming, almost, and looked old-fashioned. There were some sod houses, like his old house, but there were some wooden ones too, like Cousin Roderich's. A few hardy stone ones stood proudly, but there weren't really too many. Audun counted about eight, but he could've missed a few. One had gorgeous flowers surrounding it, but on closer inspection, none of them were lily of the valley.

Sighing, Audun found that he had to make his way to the very back.

What he saw was simply breathtaking.

A giant fence made of nothing like he'd ever seen before surrounded the castle, closing it off to intruders. The fence had gaps in it, however – it was like bars of some material had been shaped into rods and placed next to each other and on top of each other, forming a grand wall outside of it. Through these gaps he could make out the castle courtyard. A beautiful garden was visible, and, on top of that, a plethora of fruit trees. Audun never knew that such things could grow, let alone in a cold place like this.

As he searched, he saw what he was looking for. A single bush stood out from the rest, no other plant standing by it. On that one bush, a little stem protruded, yielding the only bit of lily of the valley in the entire garden.

Well, Tino deserved the best, didn't he? Audun tried the gate, which didn't budge, so he began to hop in place, doing a mini warm-up.

The fence loomed over him, daring him to try and overcome it.

Audun took it up on that dare. Briefly, he warmed his hands with his breath. Once he felt ready, he curled his fingers around the bars and began to climb.

* * *

_AN/:_

_Whew, thanks for reading through to the end of yet another exposition chapter. I promise, things'll start picking up really soon – we're almost out of the whole exposition._

_If you caught on to what this is based on, kudos. I'm trying not to make it obvious as of now, but I'm afraid that I might have already. x_x_

_Thank you to my reviewers – I was really busy but checked the site, and I had two new reviewers that wanted me to update. I feel like I'm letting you guys down if I don't write now. xD;;_

_Expect slightly more regular updates from now on, and please point out any errors you spot as usual._

_-Sweet_


	4. Fantasy

_AN;;_

_The next chapter, finally!_

_Hope you enjoy~_

_

* * *

_

His hands were blistered, but it had been worth it. Audun was now safely on the other side, staring the castle right in the face.

It was a grand place – its doors were many times his size. Briefly, he wondered how someone would actually get in, but he figured that it wasn't his problem. He'd never go in (or have the desire to, in any case).

The brother looked to the right of the door and rediscovered the single sprig of Lily of the Valley, begging to be plucked and carried off to Tino. Audun carefully plucked it off and was about to turn to go home.

But then he found himself with an axe by his neck. Oh, joy.

"What're you doin' here, punk?" A voice from behind him snapped. It was low, gruff and grated against his eardrums terribly. Audun fidgeted, but was stopped when the axe was pressed closer to his neck. It was suddenly very difficult to breathe.

It was best to remain stoic in these situations. Though he was reasonably frightened, Audun kept his voice level. "Getting a present. Would you be so kind as to take that away from my neck?"

Slowly, the weapon was withdrawn. When Audun attempted to turn around, the voice snapped at him. "Don't look at me, swine!"

Audun took a deep breath, but complied with the person's whims. Being decapitated wasn't a state he particularly fancied.

The voice spoke again. "Why did you think you could take something from the king's castle? Are you _above_ us or something?"

A scoff.

This guy was taking it _all_ too personally.

"No, I just needed one of these - for my brother, you see. No one else was growing it," Audun adjusted his hat casually, as if he were discussing the weather. He appeared calm, but his eyes were raised up in suspicion, his body tense. A madman with an axe shouldn't be messed with.

"Your… brother?"

In a moment, Audun was whirled around, now facing his attacker. He wasn't ugly or gruff looking like he had expected, just a little rugged. A hat was somehow balanced on top of his wild hair, but other than that, he seemed pretty ordinary.

The attacker narrowed his eyes and seemed to be studying Audun, muttering something over and over again. Just when Audun was starting to get uncomfortable, a metaphorical light bulb (or candle) seemed to pop above his head.

"Okay then, kid. I'ma let 'cha take that flower."

"Really now," Audun played with the bit of stray hair that always seemed to be popping out of his sailor hat.

"Yeah, I'll even let you live!"

"That's certainly a plus."

The man looked stumped for a moment, but then shook his head vigorously. "Yeah, yeah it is. But I have some conditions for youse to follow."

Audun raised an eyebrow delicately. "Oh?"

The man gave an enthusiastic nod. "Yeah! Youse gonna tell your brother to get his patootie over here. He'll be staying here for… oh, I dunno, the rest of his life. If you don't, I'ma kill you right here, right now."

For a moment, Audun didn't comprehend what he had said. He opened his mouth several times and closed it, like a beached fish. Eventually, he was able to get out something that sounded almost, but not quite like, "You… what now?"

"Yeah, and if you lie and say you'll do it but 'cha don't, I'ma kill both of 'chu. Got that?" The man stroked the blade of his axe tenderly, as if caressing a lover. It was certainly the most lethal weapon that Audun had ever seen, even moreso than his own sword. He began to reach for it, but this man was deceivingly sharp. With a savage grin, he pointed the axe at Audun's neck again. "What do you say, tough guy?"

Audun gulped, but really knew he didn't have much of a choice. Either he died, they _both_ died, or Tino went on some sort of vacation here for all eternity or whatever. He needed one thing verified before he could really make his decision with a clear conscience. "Well, will he come to any harm? I don't want to tell my brother to come walking to his death, thank you."

"Wot wot?" The man had gotten distracted with the light reflecting off of his axe. He looked slightly dazed, smiled, and then continued, "Oh, yeah, m'sure 'e'll be fine. I certainly won't touch 'em, nup-nup." He gave a shrug. "So youse gonna get 'im here or what?"

With a slow nod, Audun sealed Tino's fate. "Yes, I will. I don't know when he'll actually be here, though. We live pretty far away."

The man raised an eyebrow. "Oi, I can gets youse there. We's got some like faster means of transportation. Come on out here, kid." The axe wielder pulled on Audun's arm, unlocked and opened the large gate, then stepped out. He made his way over to one of the little houses. Pink flowers were stuck on the walls and ivy climbed up it. It was a really pretty house, truly, but not one that Audun would expect this guy to have.

"Is this your house?" He said, sounding unimpressed.

"Wot?" The man looked stumped. "Naw, 'course not. Come on now, we's goin' in."

The two walked inside to see a blond person, staring out the window thoughtfully. Audun's escort seemed to know something that Audun didn't. "'Ey man! Wass wrong?"

The house's owner looked up, his jade eyes shimmering. "I ate a flower…." He mumbled, and it took a moment for Audun to comprehend it (he had an odd accented twang).

Audun's eye twitched. Who the hell went around eating flowers anyway? He was about to voice this, but the man with the axe broke down into insane laughter. "Again, man? Jeez!" He was clutching his sides dramatically, obviously doing it to make the green-eyed man upset.

"Hey, it's totally unfunny! Don't you laugh like that, ya' big jerk!" The owner replied. Now that his voice had grown louder, his accent was more prominent. It sounded more like a teen girl's voice than a 'man's' voice (Audun only assumed that this guy was male because the axe wielder insisted on calling him so), but Audun wasn't about to start pointing that out.

The axeman wiped away a few stray tears, then got a business-like look on his face. "Yeah yeah, Feliks. Anyway, I need your wagon and some of your horses. You good with that?" He asked, his casual speaking pattern abandoned for the time being.

The man called Feliks puffed out his cheeks. Something seemed to be bugging him, but he wasn't making it clear as to what it was. "Ugh, fine. Just don't hurt my _ponies_, okay?" He blew a stray hair out of his face. "Anyway, what do you, like, need them for? It's totes not cool to just go and take them without telling me why, you know?"

With a nonchalant shrug, axeman motioned towards Audun. "I need to get this kid back to town and make a switcheroo. He stole one of the king's flowers, ya' know."

Feliks' mouth dropped. "He did what? What a total dumbass!" The man began to laugh shrilly.

Axeman wasn't laughing with him.

"You're one to talk, _dumbass._" He smirked as Feliks' laughter was cut off. "Anyway, we'll be going now. Have fun with flower-eating." A wave, and then he dragged Audun out of the house, making his way around back. Axeman nonchanlantly hitched up the little wagon that Feliks owned, coaxing two brown ponies to the axle. He then threw some hay in the cart, reined the ponies, and jumped on himself. "Go on, get movin'!" He shouted at the 'steeds', which reluctantly began to trot forward.

They eventually made their way back into the marketplace section of the town. As he wasn't in a rush, Audun was able to look at things pass by. There was a man wearing a weird hat (almost like a towel) apparently selling "things."

"Things! Get your… things…!" He called out uncertainly to the people meandering through the marketplace. Audun would have disregarded him, but he caught Eirik by him, chatting as if they were good friends. Oh, that was peachy, wasn't it?

He looked to his left and saw the clothing store. The seller from before was pawing through his wears, but looked up when the wagon passed by. "Matthias! What's happenin', bro?" He called obnoxiously, waving his oversized sleeve in the process.

"Nothin' much, man! Just gonna take a sidetrip to the village, that's all," Axeman replied energetically. Audun blinked – he wasn't 'Axeman,' he was '_Matthias_' - but didn't offer any other sign of emotion.

The clothing seller raised an eyebrow, but waved him on. "'K! Be back before nighttime!"

Audun allowed himself to ponder. Every person in the area seemed to be simply _obsessed_ with being inside by night. It didn't make sense for the marketplace people to be so paranoid about it though – their town looked fine. No walls surrounded it either, so it wasn't like they had protection.

Bored, Audun looked to the right and saw the wolves in the pens. Perhaps these wolves weren't the things terrorizing the village. Perhaps they were helping the marketplace by scaring off the wild animals.

He cradled his chin in his hand. Then how come the village didn't use wolves? Surely _someone_ could afford them – they _had_ built that enormous wall, in any case.

The logic of everyone here seemed to be messed up. Figuring that he'd get a headache if he tried to sympathize with them any longer, Audun curled up on the hay and fell asleep.

* * *

"Hey kid, wake up… wake _up!_"

Audun whimpered, but opened an eye.

Oh look, crazy Axeman. Just who he wanted to see at... whatever time of day this was. He groaned and turned around, sitting up slowly.

"Yeah yeah, kid. Just get up, will 'ya?"

Audun aimed a glare at Matthias who, amazingly, shrunk back a little bit. "I'm up. Happy yet?" Audun snapped, pushing himself off the cart as he did so. "I suppose you want me to get my brother?"

"Yeah, unless you want an axe through your neck."

Audun _hmph_'ed and went up to the gate, forgetting how difficult it was to be heard. He felt around his person and found that he'd kept the lily of the valley on his person, so he took it out. Clearing his throat, he turned his head up to the sky. "Hellooooo. It's Audunnnn," he called in a long, not so loud, and emotionless voice.

Matthias shuddered. Scary.

Amazingly, someone heard him. The gate was opened slowly as it always was, and Audun walked straight on through. He saw that Toris was the one on duty for the moment. "Hello. Can you keep the door open? Tino's going to leave soon."

Confusion flickered across Toris' face, but he didn't question him. "All right then."

Audun walked into Cousin Roderich's house, noting that Tino was standing up, casually eating... _something_. He glanced up at the sound of the door, and practically lit up when he saw Audun.

"Oh Audun! How was shopping?" Tino stood up. "Erm, where are the clothes?"

Audun blinked. _Crap._ Where _were_ the clothes? He'd most certainly bought them, but he couldn't find them anywhere…. Maybe they were in the cart…? No, he hadn't remembered putting them there.

Now that he thought of it, he realized that he'd probably put them down to jump the fence. That was just perfect. "Er, I lost them, but I got you this!" Audun stammered uncharacteristically, holding out the flower as he did so.

Any disappointment about clothing was forgotten. "Oh boy! Thanks so much Audun!" Tino held it to his chest. "These are the prettiest flowers that I've ever seen! How much were they? Couldn't have been cheap…."

Audun felt a pang in his stomach. He couldn't just say 'your eternal soul,' could he? Gently, he took Tino's hand and led him outside. If he just explained it to him rationally, maybe he'd take it well. With a shaky sigh, Audun faced Tino. A look of confusion was plastered across the younger brother's face, but he still appeared generally overjoyed about the entire getting his flower business.

Shuddering, Audun broke it to Tino. "Look, you'll have to go to the marketplace on your own. Forever. For as long as they tell you to."

A blink. "Um, why? What happened, Audun?" Tino bit his nail and gave his brother a concerned look. Such was Tino's personality – if he were cut open and bleeding on the floor, he'd jump up and freak out if someone else so much as stubbed their toe.

"Well, I went into the flower stall, but I couldn't find your flower. When I complained to the shop keeper – the guy you met, of course - he told me to check out the king's garden. I hopped his fence—"

"You _trespassed?_"

Audun sighed. "Yes, yes I did. Anyway, I went into his garden—"

"_Trespassed…."_

"Yes, and I took your lily of the valley right there—"

"You mean you _stole _it."

Audun pinched his nose. "Look, let me finish, okay? So I _borrowed the flower without asking_ and then I had an axe up to my neck. Some guy harassed me until he said I could keep the flower and go without punishment, but he'd have to have you in return."

Tino made a face. "Why me, though? It's kinda creepy, if you think about it. Isn't it?" Though he was clearly unnerved by the situation at hand, it seemed like Tino was remarking on a battle that he'd only heard about. He seemed so detached from that entire 'oh some guy is basically kidnapping you and we might not see each other again' thing.

Audun's eyes softened. "He promised that you'd be safe. I don't know why he wants you, but I promise to visit you as often as I'm ab—."

"Hey! Who said I was going?" Tino huffed, his hands on his hips (like a girl). He almost looked menacing.

Almost.

"W-well…." Audun stammered. He hadn't counted on Tino declining. Maybe his brother had become slightly more selfish over the years? At a loss for words, Audun bowed his head.

He raised it again when he heard Tino laughing.

"I'm just kidding, jeez! If you were to die getting something for me, I don't know what I'd do!" Tino clutched the flower, looking his brother straight in the eye. "It can't be that bad, either. If I'm not gonna get hurt there, then I don't see any real disadvantages. Any way you slice it, me being in that marketplace for who-knows-how-long is better than you being killed." Tino gave his brother a good-natured smile and a big hug.

Audun was at a loss for words again. This kid had to be some sort of kindred spirit or something – no other person that he'd ever met was so selfless and kind. Trying not to cry (how unseemly!), Audun wrapped his arms around his brother. "Don't hurt yourself, okay? Be careful and don't get into any trouble." He squeezed him tightly, then let go. "There's a cart with Axeman outside the village gate. Go with him, he shouldn't hurt you."

Tino nodded. "Okay then, I'll see you soon!" He tossed a wave over his shoulder and walked out the still-open front gate, smiling at Axeman when he saw him.

"You that kid's brother?" Axeman drawled, patting a place on the cart where Tino could sit down. The younger brother hoisted himself up and planted himself on a bale of hay.

"Uh-huh! I'm Tino. I guess we'll be seeing a lot of each other now?" Tino reclined, bracing himself against the bitter wind. "Nice animals, by the way. Cute," he motioned towards the ponies.

"Actually, I don't think we'll be together a lot. You'll be living in a castle, see? By rule, I don't go in there too much. Too stuffy," Axeman snorted. "Anyways, I'm Matthias. You're much nicer than your brother, you know."

Tino picked at the hay and looked at the road ahead of him, still clutching his lily of the valley. He stared off into space, happy that he didn't have to walk to the marketplace. He sure wished that he had a cart – going to their village would have been much easier.

The wind ruffled his hair and tugged at his hat. Tino gripped it with his free hand and smiled at Matthias. "Really, now? I think I'll be out often, though. I don't really like staying indoors all day," he rocked back and forth slightly. "And if you say so, but I think that Audun's nicer than me on occasion."

Another scoff from Matthias. "Whatever, kid," he said gruffly, his eyes narrowing. Tino was about to question, but decided to bite his tongue on this one. Maybe Audun had been rude to him. Maybe certain people just rubbed Matthias the wrong way.

He tried to change the topic. "What's it like in the marketplace, anyway? I don't know if you've been told, but me and my brother are really new to the area. I've certainly never been there," he said idly, for the sake of having conversation.

Matthias huffed. Idle conversation was _boring_. "It's bustling, loud, and obnoxious. Hope you like it," he said, intending to carry on the rest of the trip in silence.

"Really? Sounds like _fun!_" Tino grinned. "I'm sure I'll be fine there, as long as I can see Audun every so often," he continued talking, ruthlessly shattering Matthias' desires for a silent trip. "Anyway, you know the attacks on our village? Do you guys get them too? They seem to be really bad, I mean I've never seen one happen, but still…" he trailed off a little bit, trying to think of more things to say. "Well, I guess I have, actually. Me and Audun were almost attacked when we were walking here," he babbled, knowing that this was a potentially good topic.

Matthias had taken up ignoring him. Maybe adopting the king's speaking habits would make this kid shut up. "Is that so?" Matthias asked, bored.

"Yup! We were fine though – Audun had a sword! And I kinda had a stick which couldn't do much, but I bet I scared a wolf off like that. They don't know how harmless sticks are, right?" Tino began to laugh.

Ugh. If anything it _egged this kid on._ Matthias was beginning to get very annoyed.

"Yup," he said shortly, trying to get across that he wasn't going to talk much.

Tino was oblivious to the hint that Matthias kept trying to give him. "We got away without getting hurt at all! I swear, mankind can do anything that we put our mind to!"

Matthias tried to get the horses (ponies) to go a bit faster. Yes… they were almost there. Just a few more minutes of this torture…!

He blocked out most of Tino's voice, but a few phrases would occasionally jump out.

"So this one time, me and my doggie Hana Tamago were rolling down our hill…."

"And then Eirik just ran away from us! I swear, sometimes Audun's just so…."

"…makes such good food! I wonder why she doesn't cook more…."

"This is my favourite flower, you know!..."

"Some crazy guy chased us out of his private garden! How funny is _that?..."_

"I hope trolls don't live in these forests. Maybe it's not just wild animals…."

"Hey! Is that the market?"

Matthias was jolted out of his partially dead state. Oh thank the _gods._ He urged the ponies onward and made it inside the market. He took him to the back of it and parked the cart by the gate.

For once, Tino felt a sharp twang of fear. Something didn't feel right about the castle – it was too big looking… too…

…he couldn't place his finger on it. _Something_ was terribly off about it, but he couldn't decide what….

With anticipation, the young brother huddled in the cart and pulled his flower close to his chest, his new home looming over him.

* * *

_AN:/_

_I need to stop prolonging these chapters. I'm sorry. Dx_

_Anyway, I think this is the very last somewhat exposition chapter, but I hope you liked it anyway. Not many Viking references were in this one, which made me really sad. _

_Thank you all for your kind reviews, and please point out mistakes/suggestions/whatever as you see fit._

_Thank you so much for reading!_

_-Sweet_


	5. Fangs

_AN:/_

_Long time no update!_

_

* * *

_

With a few shuddery steps, Tino made his way up to the gate like his own brother had done just hours ago. Shuffling his feet, his hands clutched around the flower, choking the colour out of it. Normally, a flower enthusiast like Tino would have avoided this at all costs, but he was too nervous to even register that he was doing it. He aimed a glance back at his chauffer, but the man with the axe was already heading out, not even offering a wave to Tino. Hmph! How mean – had Tino said something wrong?

Without further ado, Tino faced the gate again, taking in its sheer size. It was just so intimidating! Tino's mind wondered if he got many guests, this king. If he set things up to look this uninviting, then surely not many people could _want_ to visit, could they?

_Then_ Tino wondered how he was actually supposed to come into the place. It certainly didn't have a bell system and nobody was guarding the gate or anything. To test the gate, the boy pushed against it, yelping when one of the sharp edges cut into his finger. Okay, _that_ wasn't going to work.

Aiming his head at the top of the gate, Tino decided to use his voice (as per usual). "HELLLLLLLOOOO! PLEEEEEAAAASSEEEE OOOOPEEEN THE GAAAATE," he called obnoxiously, kicking the bottom of the gate for added effect.

At first, he saw no results. Soon enough, though, a light shone in the window, then another window, then another. Shadows would pass over them every so often, and Tino could sometimes make out a figure in the windows if he strained his eyes.

A few curtains were drawn, some opened, then stillness once more. Tino was starting to wonder if he had been forgotten, but then the gate creaked open without anyone manning it. With a shiver, he crept through it, his eyes scouring the area for a doorman.

No one was around, but Tino felt the need to express his gratitude anyway. "Thank you," he whispered in a general direction, hoping that the gate opener had heard him.

The garden was colourful against the gray slate of the castle, the several shades of the flowers contrasted pleasantly with each other. These were obviously not grown randomly, Tino could tell – someone with a practiced eye for flowers or patterns had designed this place. Even Tino couldn't find a flower particularly out of place, though he could swap a few around due to personal preference.

Instead of heading inside, Tino meandered into the garden, stroking the petals of every flower. Because he lived in such a harsh climate, flowers were hard to come by – seeing something like this was pretty welcoming.

As if in a dream, he continued floating around the place, sampling each scent like a bumble bee. Granted, his nose got swollen and his eyes began to water (he never did understand why his body was so irritated around flowers), but it was well worth it. The flower vendor's garden had been extensive, but not this expertly laid out in the least. Best of all, Tino was able to see flowers that he hadn't ever seen before, obviously expensive. Some were carefully placed around mirrors that reflected straight onto them. Tino pondered and studied the mirror (but was careful not to move it). Perhaps these were sun-loving plants that couldn't take the bitter cold – not at all like the shade-dwelling lily of the valley.

Speaking of, he could see the non-bush of the lilies, but none were on it. Huh. He gripped his own flower protectively, deciding that he should probably stop moping around. Maybe this king guy was nice and _not_ a creeper at all!

Tino walked back and approached the door to the castle, equally as intimidating as the gate. It differed from it because it actually opened. Tino stepped inside and was greeted with a pleasant warmth, coming from a roaring fire. It wasn't in a pit like in most houses – it was more similar to the village ones, more sophisticated.

It was a shame that the fire had been the first thing that he noticed because of how opulent every other cranny was in the place. It was a humongous room with a giant staircase in the back, one that Tino felt awkward to look at. His muddy feet sunk into the plush carpet below his feet (not that he _knew _was carpet was), thousands of crystals reflected from the chandelier above (but he had no idea what that was, either). The mantle of the fireplace (once again, something Tino didn't know of) was decorated with about fifteen trinkets, all sparkling in the light from above.

Two swords hung above the mantle, something Tino was familiar with. He longed for the swords of his parents, at least then he would feel capable of protecting himself from whatever was to come.

Not that he was distrusting of his surroundings. No, just a little insecure.

He would have explored his extravagant new home, but a creak sounded from his right. What was that? It had sounded like a chair against a wood flooring (a sound he learned from his previous new home), but where could that be coming from? And how come this place was so… _small?_ It wasn't as if he were complaining, it was just that it had looked so much bigger from the outside. There was only this place, with plush carpeting and a fireplace, that seemed to serve little purpose. What kind of house was this?

As he looked for the source of the sound, he noticed another door. That was weird, since when were there doors inside houses? Would this just lead him outside again? How pointless! With a huff, Tino opened the door.

Oh. That was _not _outside, was it?

With a blink, Tino saw that the doors inside the house led to other rooms. This room had wood flooring, but was still similar in opulence to the plush room with the fireplace.

Another fireplace was against the wall, but a large table went down the middle of the room, cushioned chairs pushed up to the sides. Only one chair was pulled out, a silver platter on the table space in front of it.

Tino quirked an eyebrow, but inferred that it was either meant for him or for the king. Perhaps a servant had laid it out for dinner or something. Tino trotted up to the open chair and sat down on it, finding it hard to feel uncomfortable with the situation when the chairs themselves were just so comforting.

He pulled the cover off of the plate, revealing a succulent looking dinner of a type of meat (Tino had never seen it before), some round type of filler food, and a bright orange fruit. Next to it all was a letter, a little damp with steam.

Tino pulled it up and glanced at it. The writing certainly looked neat, with carefully formed letters.

_Tino,_

_In anticipation of your arrival, I've set up dinner and a room for you. I do hope you find it most suitable. I will not be around much and you are not expected to do anything, but please do make yourself at home. You may venture into the marketplace as often as you like, though I would not advise going out at nighttime. If you should, however, no harm will come to you._

_You will have at least two meals a day, all of them will be filling._

_I only have two rules. _

_Do not go looking for me_

_Do not leave the marketplace._

_Please comply as readily as you are able. _

_Have a comfortable night._

Then a seal was placed under it – two lions clutching a shield with more lions on it. Crowns were on the lion's head and on the shield.

Unfortunately, Tino couldn't read. Whatever this was, it looked pretty important – Tino had a feeling that not being able to read was a big problem here. He bit his lip. That picture under it looked pretty important, but what did it all mean? Oh darn it all….

Wait. If someone had made noise earlier, it meant that someone was here now, didn't it? Maybe he could ask them to interpret. Tino placed the cover back over the meal and slipped off the chair, looking around for more of those inside door things.

There were a lot more in this room, but which one to go in? Tino figured that if he heard something from behind one, then there had to be someone there, right? He listened next to two doors, both seeming to be dead behind it, and then skipped the one he had just come from, leaving one door. With a deep breath, he pushed it back, preparing to yell a greeting in this guy's face.

It was much dimmer in this room, so Tino wondered if his eyes were playing tricks on him. A giant armchair was pointed away from the door, but Tino could see that someone was in it. "E-excuse me?" Tino ventured, noting the twitch in the chair at the sound of his voice.

Silence, then a low rumble. "What're ye' do'n here?" It took a minute for Tino to register it as someone speaking.

"N-nothing! I'm not doing anything!" Tino blurted in an uncharacteristically scared way. Why was it that this atmosphere sent shivers up and down his spine - that he found it difficult to stay there when he could easily bolt and run? "I just wanted to see where the king was, that's all," Tino scuffled his feet into the worn wood flooring, something that seemed out of place in this elegant dwelling. He trembled when the voice thundered again.

"That so?"

For whatever reason, that infuriated Tino. What was that supposed to mean, "that so?" It was obviously some sort of filler statement, said by people too stupid to have conversations properly. At least that Matthias guy had at least tried to pay attention to him talking!

At least, that's what _Tino_ thought on the matter.

As he fumed, the voice spoke up again.

"Ye' can't read?"

Tino blinked. Eek! How did that guy know? "Nope, I can't. It's kind of not common knowledge, you know," he tapped his chin thoughtfully, his other hand still clutching his flower. "But can _you_ read? If _that's so_," he stressed the last phrase, noting that the figure twitched when he did so, "then maybe you can help me." He punctuated his thought by bouncing slightly on his toes, peeved with how slowly the person responded.

Finally, he spoke. "'M the 'un who wrote th't. 'M the king." The man shifted in his seat momentarily, oblivious to the gape now present on Tino's face. The king! Who would have thought that this really creepy guy was the king? Tino brushed the hair out of his face and stared, trying to process that he would have to live with this guy for pretty much his entire life.

When he thought of it that way, he felt panic rise in his throat. His desire for small talk sprung, so he began to spurt the first things that came to mind. "Oh, really? That means we'll be living together from now on, right?" He paused with a smile, hoping to detect a change in the king's attitude. He strained to see, but detected absolutely nothing. Bugger. Well, uh, gotta talk, right? "I'm Tino, it's really nice to meet you. I…" oh, how to word this… "_think_ we'll get along really well!" Oh boy – did that sound convincing enough? Tino sure hoped so.

"Mm," the king mumbled, his low voice reverberating through the room in an almost ominous manner. Tino got a mad case of the chills. Brr, this guy wasn't much of a talker, was he?

Shuffling his feet side to side, Tino attempted conversation again. "Sooo… what's your name?" He asked, giving the king something that he could readily reply to. Maybe the king just was uncomfortable with people.

Unfortunately, he never gave a response, he just sat in his chair and stared at the fire some more. Tino had no idea what his problem was, but it was really starting to bug him. With a glare, Tino stomped up, poking him on the back a little too harshly. "Look, I'm _trying _to get us off on the right foot. _I'm_ trying to be a good guest. The least you can do is tell me your name," he snapped, his cheerful self abandoned for the time being. If this guy couldn't even put forth an effort, this would be a very long rest of his life.

After another infuriating silence, Tino figured that it would be best to confront this guy directly. Huffing to let the king know how displeased he was, Tino stomped around and made to face this silent king dead in the face. He didn't expect him to shrink back like that, though – the king had pulled his cloak over himself, as if making a shield between him and Tino. Getting a little annoyed again, Tino bit the inside of his cheek. "Come on, I'm sorry about yelling at you and all, don't be afraid of me," he tried to reason, a hint of irritation in his voice. When the king didn't even acknowledge Tino saying anything, Tino realized that he might havereally hurt his feelings or something. Gently, he kneeled next to him and lightly touched his hand. "Hey, I don't bite – I'm really sorry! You don't hate me, right? I mean I know that it sounds like I hate you_,_ but I really don't. I don't even know you yet," Tino tried to reason, convinced that his new housemate was upset because of his rudeness.

Tentatively, the king stirred, still not showing himself to Tino. "'M Berwald, 's all ye' w'nted ta' know, right?" He shifted so he was sitting sideways in his chair, his face still concealed. Had he just introduced himself? Tino couldn't be too sure, but he thought that he had heard "Berwald…" what kind of name was that?

Tino decided to verify. "You're Berwald? Pleasure to know your name at last," he grinned. "Now here, let's see each other face to face. I mean, we're gonna be living together, right?" Take away that ridiculous cape thing covering your face," Tino gave a nervous laugh – it was dawning on him that this was a very awkward encounter and he kind of wanted to sleep.

It seemed to be even more awkward for Berwald, because he jerked from under the blanket. His form shrank back, which made Tino quirk an eyebrow. "Come on now, don't be _shy_," Tino said, as though being shy was a sort of deadly sin. When Berwald refused still, Tino began to tug on the cloak. Berwald's hands tightened around it stubbornly, so Tino stopped. "Really, take off the cloak," he said, beginning to get a little exasperated.

"No," Berwald said in response, though it was hard to tell what he had said at first. Tino's eyes narrowed.

"Yes."

"No…."

"_Yes."_

"No!"

"_Berwald, take just take it _off!" Tino screamed, seized the cloak himself and yanked it as hard as he could. Berwald made a kind or distressed _noise_ (Tino had no idea how to describe it). When Tino finally got a look at Berwald, though, it was safe to say that he was the scariest and most hideous thing that he'd ever seen in his life.

Hollowed, narrow eyes glared at him with the intensity and likeness of a hawk's. Rough-looking fur sprouted from all over Berwald's body, pale in colour. From the places where his skin was visible, it appeared to be more scale-like than anything else. A long, greasy tail snaked out and curled under the chair, lashing back and forth irritably. Long, curled claws were digging into the seat, effectively ruining it for anyone else that might have liked to sit on it. Worst of all, though, was the creature's face itself. Horrible fangs of impossible length jutted out of Berwald's maw; a discoloured nose sat on the end of it, making him appear wolfesque. That is, he would look like a wolf, sans the creeping scales festering all over his face. Tufts of the fur poked out from his face, making him look like a disfigured abomination. As Tino took it all in, Berwald tensed, his muscles rippling with the movement.

To be perfectly blunt, Tino was terrified. Instinctively he flung himself backwards, shielding himself with one arm. He cowed, but looked up when he found that he was still intact and not being ripped to shreds. Slowly, he removed the arm from his face. The creature was still tensed, but it didn't seem like it was going to strike anytime soon.

"B-Berwald?" Tino ventured, his breath shaky. Maybe if he pinched himself he would find this entire thing to be nothing but a dream. He pinched himself. Shoot, it wasn't a dream, but now his arm really kinda hurt.

The monster looked up at the sound of its name, his eyes looking a little softer than they had a moment before. He gave Tino a look that he could decipher. It was a negative emotion, Tino supposed, because Berwald's tail was in between his legs and his ears were pulled back, just like how Hana Tamago looked when she was being scolded.

Tino was still breathing shallowly, not able to see clearly. Berwald seemed to notice, however, and slowly stood himself up, putting his arm-like appendages in front of him like the crocodile hunter confronting a particularly feisty snake.

When Tino withdrew, Berwald stopped advancing towards him. "'M not gonna 'urt ye'," he tried to articulate. Tino could see quite clearly that having a muzzle and teeth of that size was making it difficult for him to talk. He winced – why the hell was some sort of talking wolf-snake creature living in a castle and being called a king? Have the market people ever even _seen_ him?

In any case, Tino opted to trust him for the time being. It wasn't that he was quick to trust a monster that could very well eat him, he just had no other choice. "What're you doing?" he questioned when Berwald began to leave the room – Tino noted that he walked on all fours. How had he written that letter? Didn't you need working hands to write?

Berwald glanced behind him. "Do ye' want t' sleep?"

Tino blanked for a minute. "Um, yeah," he mumbled, fiddling with the flower still in his hands.

Berwald continued onwards, so Tino assumed that he should probably follow him. He _did_ know his way around, right?

They made their way back into the first room, the embers in the fireplace dying. Moving quickly, Berwald tramped up the stairs in the back, leaving Tino to run after him. Man, he could move _fast._

When they got to the top, it opened to a long hallway, which Berwald turned down. After quite a bit of walking, Berwald gently nosed open a door to reveal an opulent bedroom. A giant canopy was the focal point of the room, but a large vanity and wardrobe were striking as well. Tino, having never even seen a comfortable-looking bed before, had no idea how to take it all. His fingers stroked the smooth walls, his eyes wide. Was this really his room? Tino gave a half turn to question about it, but Berwald was out of the room already. A weight pulled itself off of his chest – at least his host wouldn't stalk him like a lost puppy.

He shut the door and breathed a sigh of relief. He wasn't dead – not in the least! Still shaken from the events of a few minutes ago, Tino resolved to flop on the bed (gently setting his flower on the vanity before he did so) and breathe in the scent of the sheets. Mm, rose.

After mindlessly laying there for a minute, Tino glanced up and saw yet another door – this one having glass in it. Through it he could see the outdoors. He chewed his lip thoughtfully – why would you have a door leading outside when they were so high up? Tino slid off the bed and trotted over to the door, opening it and letting in the dry, cool air.

There was a ledge with railing on the side, perfect for being in nature without actually _being _in nature. Tino stepped out onto the ledge (well, _balcony_, but Tino didn't know what that was) and leaned against the railing. Directly below him was the marketplace, dark due to the lack of sun. If he looked out, the moonlight revealed to him the forest – he could see the hills where the flower-seller's garden lay, and he could even see the path that led to his home village. How he missed that place! If only his parents had allowed him to go to war with them, if only they could have helped! Tino sighed, briefly reflecting on his parent's nature. They had loved Audun and Tino so much that they couldn't have let them go – they couldn't take the chance of them getting hurt. Other people found them crazy – if teenagers could fight, then surely young adults could, they said.

Tino rested his chin on his hand, still gazing out to the horizon. Why, there was the village where Audun and Cousin Roderich and everyone were, the one with the wall. He blinked and stared at it longingly – what were they doing tonight? A selfish part of Tino hoped that they were all discussing his departure, but something inside him doubted that they were.

With a sigh, he rested his entire chest on the railing.

He didn't want to be stuck here forever.

* * *

_AN :/_

_I'm so happy that I could finally get this chapter up! Life's been so busy for me lately, I sincerely apologize. This chapter wasn't edited by my beta, so hopefully everything is still legible. ;; ;;_

_I've read all of your reviews and am touched by every single one. I've tried to address all the plotholes and errors that you've brought up in this chapter. Thank you so much for helping me with that – I do really appreciate it._

_I've made it super obvious what this is based on now, and if you're slow (like me) and still don't know, it's Beauty and the Beast, yeah. It deviates so much from the movie because I really didn't want to rehash the same story that everyone knows and just switch some characters around. I'm sure you've seen all the fictions that incorporate things like Cogsworth and Lumiere as England and France and, though fitting, I didn't want to end up copying the movie. I tried for my own original take, but imagine my surprise when I found out that there was another movie about Viking Beauty and the Beast! ;; ;; ;;_

_Regardless, it (hopefully) won't go in a predictable fashion, so prepare for some surprises!_

_Thanks for sticking with me!_

_-Sweet_


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